


Hidden In The Shadows

by villaintohero



Category: Dishonored (Video Game), Thief (Video Games)
Genre: Assassin - Freeform, Crossover, Drama, Hurt and SO MUCH Pain, M/M, Porn, Romance, Thief, Violence, at some point probably, stealing stuff and killing guards, this is going to be bad, what has corvo become?
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-07-23
Updated: 2017-01-31
Packaged: 2018-04-10 20:11:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 10,057
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4405892
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/villaintohero/pseuds/villaintohero
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"In a city, falling apart, full of hatred, pain and lies, thieves and assassins can be heroes."<br/>This is the story of Garrett and Corvo. How they met and how they changed each others lifes.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prolog: Last Screams

**Author's Note:**

> I just decided to start a fanfiction of my most favorite games.  
> I hope you guys like it and I would love to get some feedback from you! That would help me out a lot.  
> If there are any mistakes of any kind in the text, just let me know. I'm german and I tried to translate it from german into english and well, it was pretty hard.
> 
> And thanks so much to my beta-reader haethel, who helps me translating the story!
> 
> See yah in the next chapter! ♥

Slowly, the man opened his blueish-grey eyes. Tired eyelids made it hard to clear his vision. How much time had passed since the last time he had slept? To be honest, he didn’t even know for sure.

He squinted for a brief moment as the bright light was lit outside in the corridor. He was getting used to the dark. Or he was just forgetting about the light in the world. That’s just the way it was. After three months in this hellhole you forget about the nice and bright things in life. Who could blame him for that?

Just a moment later, the heavy metal doors of his cell were opened and two men in uniform entered. Before he knew it they had grabbed him and forced him to get up. His weary joints ached; he didn’t want any of this anymore.

Of course he knew where they were going to take him. To the torture chamber, trying - again - to get a confession out of him. Perhaps he would’ve smiled or even laughed if the situation weren’t bad enough already. The irony seemed so surreal, as if it were just a story used to teach kids to fear the monsters hiding in the world. But still, even if it felt so surreal … it felt like a crushing burden, carried on the shoulders of a broken man.

His bare feet carried him along the cold floor while the two men beside him drove him forward, didn't let him slack off as his legs carried him a little slower because of his lack of sleep. His tired eyes were fixed on the other cells, just to take a look at the worst kinds of criminals Dunwall had to offer. In addition to simple thugs and rebels there were also rapists, murderers and assassins. Once again he wondered how it happened that he, a former nobleman, was now known as one of those men.

Corvo Attano. A simple child, living on the street, becoming the Lord Protector. A strong friendship, a short affair … and a bond between them that was reflected in their daughter’s laughter. Then screams - blood - and only one word in his mind: **Traitor**.

Quickly Corvo turned his gaze as one of the prisoners, one of those that didn’t ignore him, yelled the worst and yet most common words he heard in past few months. “Oh there we have the murderer of our beloved empress. Can’t wait to see you hanging, you dirty rat!”

And probabl the worst thing of it all was, that Corvo got used to those things they said.

'Finally' they arrived at the torture chamber and, without any fighting back, Corvo let the two guards tie him to the chair. He knew what would come—he knew all of the torturer’s tricks. He wasn’t able to surprise him anymore - still, he wasn’t overly fond of what was going to happen.  
The two guards left the room quickly. Maybe they didn’t want to stand in the way of the torturer, or they just didn’t want to have to watch what was going to happen. Who could’ve blamed them for that decision?

How did it all fall apart? Just a few months ago he’d been happy. He lived in the palace, with Emily and Jessamine. He had someone else he deeply cared about, though not one of the usual kind, and he’d been able to smile. First Garrett disappeared without any trace. Corvo just had to smile for a very brief moment, as he thought about how their friendship had started. It had been hard but his patience was worth the prize. Did he die while doing what he could do best? Was he captured? And what about Emily? Was she safe? Was she scared?  
Corvo shook his head, as if he was trying to get those thoughts out of his head. Always the same questions, and never an answer. The very thought of his daughter and probably best friend being hurt - or worse - made him want to puke.

He just hoped and prayed that they were safe - and happy - wherever they were. And he hoped that all this was going to end soon. Corvo had been imprisoned for three months now, and still no relieving execution in sight.. or the chance to be freed by someone. But who would free him anyway? He was a criminal, after all.

As two familiar men entered the room he looked up again with a dead and dangerous look in his eyes. If he just could’ve freed himself from those leather bonds around his torso, wrists and ankles. They would’ve paid for what they did - they would’ve gotten it all back.

“Hello, Corvo. How are you feeling today?” Hiram Burrows - the so-called Lord Regent - was the first to speak with a sharp and snobby sound in his voice.

Corvo didn’t answer. He just stared at the bald man in front of him, the look on his face dark and full of hatred and anger. His hands were clenched into fists and he tried to keep himself from trying to loosen those straps. He had tried it far too often - he knew what would happen.

“Just as silent as I expected you to be. That’s good. Silence is good. That makes our job easier.”

“Go … to hell,” was the only thing Corvo said. His voice was weak, but still filled with hatred and so much anger, as if he tried to kill those men just by saying those three words. Just a few seconds later he felt the torturer’s first punch in his stomach. A painful gasp left his throat as he fell forward, the leader straps the only thing supporting him from falling over. He couldn’t help but cough a few times, trying not to throw up. The torturer was strong, and Corvo was weakened by the lack of sleep.

“Enough with those games. We don’t have time for that.” With his arms crossed and the bossy sound of his voice, Campbell kept Burrow from saying anything else until he looked at the torturer. “Just do it. We have to silence him for good. In this condition, we don’t have any use for him,” was the last thing he said as he left the room. Corvo watched him leave with growing confusion. What the hell was that supposed to mean?

“Sweet dreams, Lord Protector.” With these words and a smirk on his lips, Burrow followed Campbell out of the room.

Before Corvo realized what was happening the torturer had grabbed a sharp knife and got over to the chair Corvo was tied to. One large hand rested against his mouth and his head was pressed back with such a huge strength. The next second he felt the cold blade against his throat and suddenly he started to panic. Feared for his life. Something that he no longer thought he could feel. He began to fight back, but was too weak to do anything against the situation.  
His eyes widened in shock, terror and pain, as he felt the blade slowly cutting his throat open. The blood ran down his throat, hot liquid on cold skin.

The last things Corvo felt were heat - then the cold, nausea - dizziness - and then he fell into the dark. 


	2. 10 Minutes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's finally the first chapter! I actually made it sort of!  
> But of course, I wouldn't have done that without my precious beta-reader haethel. Thanks so much again!
> 
> So yeah, I hope you enjoy it.  
> I would love to get some reviews from you guys and yeah: Here it is!

_9 months ago_

Slowly, the night took over Dunwall, and even the brightest places in the city were soon covered by the shadows. It was quiet around the palace; only a few guards could be heard talking in the distance, while doing their job, always prepared to defend the empress.

But there was someone else, too. A silhouette of a man seeming like he was part of the shadows. Unnoticed by everyone. Quick and quiet as a cat he made his way along the wall, always careful where to take his next step. Suddenly the shadow heard the voices of two guards getting closer and he pressed himself against the wall behind him, waiting for them to walk past.  
His breath was controlled and calm against the black cloth that covered half of his face. Just his dark brown eyes could be seen, and even those were covered by black coal. A small and thin man, doing what he did best. Garrett, the Master Thief. The ghost of Eternal City.

Once both men were gone he also began to move forward again. With fast, but still quiet, steps he made his way forward until he finally stood there at the façade of the large building. No one had noticed him, which was good. A quick glance upwards told him that it would probably not be a picnic to get up there.  
“I hope it’s worth the price, Basso…” the thief murmured quietly to himself, before he took his bow off his back and an arrow out of his quiver. It wasn't an usual arrow, that was for sure. A long rope was attached to it and the arrow was much more sturdy than any other arrow.  
It didn’t take long before the arrow had been shot and attached to one of the beams above the next best balcony. He took a short moment to make sure that the rope wouldn’t tear loose before he started to climb upwards. During his climb, he took a look at the place as he sneaked through. There were six guards, each and every one of them heavily armed and prepared for anything that could happen. He knew that he had to make sure that they would not trigger the alarm. Or even better: he should get back to Basso's boat as soon as possible. 

He quickly climbed further and then jumped over the railing to stand in front of a glass door. Garrett was lucky that the hallway was dark and no lights were lit, but still he had to be careful. Immediately he took the lock picks out of his gloves and started to pick the lock of the door. It was just a simple lock and the practiced Master Thief didn’t even take a minute to unlock it. His poorly drawn map told him that the room he was looking for was basically at the other end of the whole fricking building. Great. Alright, maybe it would’ve been smarter to find another way closer to his target, but that would’ve made everything so much more difficult. So, it was better this way. And maybe he would find some loot for himself while he was at it.

He slowly made his way through the dark hallway, stopping before each corner to take a look around until he took the next stairs that led him down. Basso had got the order to steal back a bracelet, which had been stolen from a customer. Not by the Empress herself. No, one of the servants was the little thief, and—well, the customer had apparently noticed the theft. The job was dangerous, almost suicidal, but Garrett didn’t mind. There was always a little risk, and he just loved the risky way.

On his way down Garrett was able to get some loot for himself. This was a palace after all—the palace of the Empress to be exact—so he had to be careful. There were guards around—many guards—just waiting for him to sneak around the next corner.  
To his surprise he only saw two guards on his way down to the servants‘ chambers. One of them was a young soldier and, so it seemed, this was his first night actually doing his job. Poor boy, he was just so nervous. And the other one was sleeping on a chair. The helmet covered his whole face and in his hand was an empty bottle. Basically, nothing to worry about. Most of the guards were outside, and surely a few of them were also wandering around in the corridors. But not down here in the basement.

He quickly sneaked past those two guys and made his way further until he reached the chambers he was looking for. Quiet snoring surrounded him as Garrett managed to enter the room. Everyone seemed to be deeply asleep, so there was still no challenge for the Master Thief. Crouching and with quiet, almost cat-like, steps he made his way through the room toward some boxes and cabinets. The bracelet had to be around here somewhere, no doubt about it. And indeed, soon he found what he was looking for in a small box, the lock of which he picked faster than anyone else ever could. Garrett gently took out the golden bracelet, which had some strange runes on it.  
The Master Thief knew many symbols and runes, but many of those on the bracelet were unknown to him. Looking at the loot and the symbols, he highly doubted the client would know any of them either. Garrett, however, saw at once that the bracelet was not made from real gold. Well, as long as he was paid, he didn‘t care. His job was not to ask questions, but to show results.  
Garrett put the bracelet into his pocket and placed the little box back where he found it, and then he left the room before anyone could even guess that he had been in there. 

Once he was back upstairs, ready to get to the next exit—the balcony, because there he would be able to take a look at the places he was about to sneak through—he heard two voices. They came closer. Much too close for Garrett‘s taste. Reflexively he grabbed the door knob right next to him. Quickly he sneaked into the room and closed the door quietly behind him. Garrett took a deep breath and, lucky as he was, there was no one in the room. Garrett tried to listen to the voices through the door. There were two men, talking about … something. He didn’t really know what they were talking about; they were much too quiet. Were they guards? Or just some of the servants?  
Garrett listened further until he noticed that one of the men had passed the door, while the other seemed to have walked upstairs. They had split up. Sadly, he also needed to go upstairs again—well, what a coincidence. But Garrett had to take that risk. Somehow he needed to escape from here, and the balcony was the safest way. He waited another brief moment before he opened the door again to sneak out of the room. There was no one around anymore; at least there was some good news. Carefully, he closed the door again and moved forward towards the stairs to get upstairs again. Garrett knew that he had to be even more careful now; someone was here. Time to be the ghost he always claimed to be.

 

Meanwhile, in another hallway of the palace the Lord Protector made his way to his bedroom. It wasn’t his job to guard the hallways at night; he left that job for the usual guards. Of course his bedroom was close to the Empress‘ bedroom and to Emily‘s, the daughter of Empress Jessamine. He had to be prepared if something happened to either of them, so he could be there in time.  
Again he took a quick look back to Emily‘s bedroom door and suddenly he had to smile, so gentle and warm. She was also his daughter. His own flesh and blood. But nobody should ever know. It was their secret, even though everyone was already speculating about the affair between Corvo and the Empress.  
Just as he went to open the door to his room, he heard a loud noise from somewhere nearby. As if something had fallen down. Corvo did not hesitate another moment, and quickly turned to walk around the next corner. Sure, maybe it was just one of the other guards, but he had to be careful. He was the Lord Protector, after all, and his job was to protect the Empress at any cost.  
And indeed a large vase lay there in front of him, in pieces, with no trace of the culprit. Now Corvo was even more suspicious, so he decided he‘d better take another look around. It wouldn’t do any harm, even if there was no-one there. He couldn’t risk anything happening to Jessamine or Emily. He would never forgive himself. With sharpened senses he walked through the long corridor, prepared for everything that might happen. As always Corvo had his weapons at hand in case he needed to use them. He hoped he wouldn’t have to.

 

Garrett, however, had managed to sneak upstairs and along a corridor until he saw someone standing there. A man in uniform—a long dark blue coat with some kind of decoration on it. Of course the Master Thief didn’t want to be discovered, so he pressed himself against the wall in a darker corner of the hallway to watch the much taller man who, obviously, stood in the way of his escape.  
Garrett could not see the man‘s face, but he was without any doubt someone of the higher class. Probably royal in some way. The man was armed like all the other guards, but something was different. Garrett didn’t know what exactly, and that drove him insane. He liked to know who—or what—he had to deal with.  
“Come on, get inside,“ Garrett mumbled as the man walked toward a door.

But before the tall man could enter the room, a noise came from somewhere down the corridor. The man stopped in his movement. Even Garrett looked in the direction where the noise had come from. Hopefully that wasn’t anything that could cause him any trouble. But to his satisfaction the tall man went around the next corner, possibly to find out what had caused the noise.

After a brief moment of waiting until he couldn’t see the assumed guard anymore, Garrett sneaked further through the hallway. There were only a few feet left to his exit, but then he heard a scream from one of the rooms nearby. A child‘s scream, it seemed. It was still pretty quiet—probably someone had tried to hold her mouth closed. It would be a miracle if someone else had heard that cry for help. However, the child seemed to be fighting back, judging by the quiet scuffle in the room.  
Garrett‘s brown eyes focused once more on the balcony, until he sighed quietly and turned around to sneak towards the door he had heard the scream come from. Quietly, he opened the door to see a masked and dark clothed man trying to keep the girl still. The girl was fighting back—she seemed to be pretty tough for her young age, even though she was too weak to get herself free. She bit the attacker in the hand and screamed again.  
“Corvo! Help!“  
Of course the man tried to grab her again, but Garrett was faster. He knocked him out from behind with his blackjack. Even though he claimed to be a ghost, he couldn’t let something happen to a little girl. Garrett took a deep breath and took a brief look at the girl. She was standing there, still scared, and staring at him. In other words, time to go.

“Emily!“ Suddenly Garrett and the young girl heard a voice from outside the room. Corvo entered the room to see his little girl standing there in front of a man—another man lying unconscious on the ground. He immediately took his sword and pointed it in Garrett‘s direction, slowly moving towards Emily to stand as a shield in front of her.  
“Is everything okay, Emily?“ Corvo asked.  
After a brief moment Emily nodded, until she hid behind her father.  
Garrett looked directly into the cold blue eyes of his opponent, before glancing at the door. If he tried to escape the other man would be able to grab him—or even worse. Carefully and slowly the thief moved backwards; maybe that would give him a chance. But the Lord Protector matched his steps until Garrett was pressed with his back against the wall.  
“Who are you?! And what the hell are you doing here?!“ the taller man demanded with a dangerous tone in his voice. The blade of his sword resting against Garrett‘s throat.  
“W-wait, Corvo! Please.“ Both men looked down to the little girl, who still looked scared as she begged her father. “He—he saved me from that other man. I don’t know w-who he is but he helped me.“  
Could it be? Was the girl Garrett‘s chance to escape this place?

For a brief moment, Corvo looked at his daughter, then back at Garrett. He knew that Emily wouldn’t lie about what happened. But still, what was this man doing here? Who was he? And how did he even get in? One arm held against the wall right beside his head kept the thief in place.  
"You heard her. I'm here by accident," Garrett said with a slightly provocing tone in his voice.  
Corvo almost smiled. But only almost. “Accidentally? Accidentally in the palace of the Empress, you mean?“ Corvo asked, looking into the deep brown eyes of his opponent. “Usually, you don’t get lost and end up here.“  
“Accidentally in the room of that girl. I wouldn’t be in this palace without a reason. I could’ve escaped sooner, but who knows what would’ve happened if I wasn’t here.“ Garrett looked directly into Corvo‘s eyes, waiting for an answer.  
“Oh - you’re here for a reason. Then enlighten me. Why are you here? And you better get to the point quickly.“  
“I just got something back from your dear servants. They had something that didn’t belong to them, and—well, I am here to get it back. Not to hurt the Empress or her daughter. To be exact, I just wanted to leave.“  
Corvo couldn’t get it straight, but something fascinated him about the man in front of him. Or maybe he was just amazed by the confident answer. But what should he do now? This man had saved Emily, as he hadnt been able to. He would’ve possibly arrived too late.  
“And what if I don’t let you go? I could imprison you for breaking into the palace, you know,“ Corvo said, raising an eyebrow. He was curious what the other man would say.  
“I would find a way out anyway.“  
Something in Garrett‘s eyes told Corvo that he was pretty confident about what he had just said. Like he knew for certain that he would be able to free himself, no matter what happened. And as far as Corvo could tell, the man in front of him seemed barely armed, or – at least – he didn’t want to fight. Garrett only had his blackjack and that was pretty useless against a sword.  
“Corvo, please.“ Emily looked up to her Dad, still hiding behind him. She just didn’t want her saviour in prison. Corvo just sighed and pushed himself off the wall. He put away the sword he had held in his hand this whole time.  
“Fifteen minutes. I give you exactly fifteen minutes to get out of here. If that time passes and I see you again somewhere around here, I’ll let the guards take care of you. I’m not doing this for you; I do this for Emily, because you saved her.“  
Surprise sparked in Garrett‘s eyes. The man just wanted to let him go? To be honest, that was not the way he assumed this would end. But the confidence quickly returned to his eyes.  
“Fifteen minutes are more than enough. Maybe I’ll go and get myself some tea while I’m at it.“  
“Ten minutes,“ Corvo said, kind of annoyed but still with a bit of amusement in his voice.  
Garrett couldn’t help but smile a little bit, hidden under his mask. Without wasting any more words he left the room and ran to the balcony, which was luckily not too far away. He quickly climbed down again—his rope arrow was still there—and there he was again, sneaking his way through.

Right after Garrett left, Corvo knelt down to hug his daughter. “I’m so glad that you’re okay,“ he murmured while gently running a hand through her hair. Again he took a look at her—he wanted to be sure she was okay—and then he smiled at her.  
Emily just had to smile as well when she saw the smile on her father‘s face. She was a brave girl, but still Corvo knew that she did cry. She kissed Corvo gently on his cheek, then she whispered into his ear. “Thanks for letting him go—Daddy.“  
Corvo just had to smile so softly after hearing her callíng him 'Daddy‘. Of course she knew that he was her father, but usually she wasn’t supposed to call him that. If someone were to find out that she was his daughter—a ‘bastard‘—there would be so many problems.  
“He helped you. The least thing I could do was to give him a little time.“  
After those words, Jessamine appeared in the room. But she was all alone. So she hadn’t let the guards trigger the alarm. After all she was just a mother, wanting to know if her child was safe.  
“Emily! Are you alright?“ she asked, before she knelt down and hugged her daughter tightly. Thank god, she was safe.  
Corvo noticed Emily looking up to him and showed her with a small gesture that what happened was to be their little secret. He was sure that Jessamine wouldn’t be angry—after all, that man had saved her little girl and she trusted Corvo. But he didn’t want to risk getting slapped by her (again), either.  
“Yes. Yes, I’m alright, Mummy,“ Emily murmured, and she hugged her mother back.  
“Thank you so much, Corvo. If there’s any way to thank you properly.“  
Corvo just shook his head with a little smile on his face. “It’s my job, after all. And—I couldn’t let anything happen to her.“ What would’ve happened if the thief hadn’t been there? He would’ve been too late—and who knows what this man had wanted to do to Emily? He owed him so much more. Corvo just looked through the door and out of the room as he thought to himself. Just wait. You always meet twice.

 

It was very easy for Garrett to get past the guards, especially as one of them had found the third intruder. They were all too busy for anyone to notice as Garrett sneaked past them. Of course he was still careful, but he soon arrived at the stone cliffs near the palace and climbed down. Basso was still waiting down there with his boat. They heard the alarm trigger from inside the palace.  
“What the fuck, Garrett? Usually you don’t trigger the alarm! Well, I suppose you get old,“ Basso said with a little smirk on his face as Garrett tried to get into the boat without falling over. Garrett hated boats. But that’s the price he had to pay, if he wasn’t in the mood for swimming back the whole way.  
No comment was wasted on Basso’s words. Garrett finally sat down and pulled his mask away from his face as Basso started to row.  
“Did something happen, Garrett? You’re so quiet. What are you thinking about?“ Basso asked, far too curious.  
“No. Everything‘s fine. Just keep rowing; you need the exercise,“ Garrett said with a small grin on his face.  
His best friend couldn’t help but laugh about this comment. “You better be careful, Garrett—or I swear, I’ll throw you out!“  
“You wouldn’t do that anyway, Basso. You’re lost without me, and you know it.“  
Again, Basso had to laugh quietly, until he cursed his best friend with a grin on his lips. Garrett, however, looked back to the palace in the distance and just had to smile again. Didn’t he say ten minutes? Well, Garrett could’ve sworn it had been at least twenty minutes before anyone raised the alarm.


	3. Eternal City

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just let me tell all of you guys that I am so SO terribly sorry that it took me so long to update this fanfiction! The beginning of the chapter was already done but then I kinda lost motivation and.. let's just say the past few months were hard and I needed a break.  
> But now I'm back and I'm trying to upload more often. Thanks so much for all the nice rewievs and the kudos, it meant a lot to me. I hope you'll enjoy this chapter!

A darkness lay above Eternal City and rain was covering the streets, houses, rooftops and all the people who were still outside at this late hour. Corvo lifted his head to take a look at the dark sky. Only the light of the moon made its way lightly through the dense clouds above. He had never been to this part of the empire before, but he heard enough about this city to know that it wasn’t the most beautiful place, nor the safest. The perfect place to search for a thief.

 

One ought to think Corvo – who served the empress for years now – would not be familiar to such a setting, but that was wrong. He himself lived on the street long enough to know how to find certain people, who don’t want to be found. After all, he was one of those people once. But those times were long gone by now.

He had spent the whole day to find this thief, to ask around if anyone could give him a hint of where he would find him. And now, in the end, he found himself walking down an alley through a place called ‘Stonemarket’. It was exactly how he imagined it to be… beggars everywhere and bootleggers and probably some criminals between them.

 

Of course Corvo knew exactly how all these thieves and other figures looked at him. He tried to hide his expensive clothes with a dark cloak, but people who lived their whole lives on the street, could easily pick someone like him out of an even larger crowd. But still, Corvo was not too concerned by the thought of someone trying to pickpocket him… he was a trained man, he knew how to take care of those situations and he had always been one of the best fighters there were.

His blue eyes looked around to find the entrance that has been described to him. He had asked a beggar on the street, where he could find the next best concealer/fence around here. Basso, was the name the beggar told him. Of course the lord protector gave this man a little reward for his help, a bit money that might get him through the next day. He couldn’t say for sure if he would find that thief there – of course Corvo tried to ask around for that man everyone was calling ‘The Master thief’, but it seemed like this man kept his whereabouts a mystery – it was still worth a try.

And there it was, at last. Behind that little staircase that led down, he saw an open door. The room was lit by a few candles and the shadows moving behind the windows lead to the conclusion that someone had to be inside. Maybe Basso or maybe someone else. Corvo went down the stairs, through the door and into the light of the candles.

 

Right in the last moment, Garrett somehow managed to hold onto the chimney next to him, before he could fall off the roof. The rooftops where too slippery at the moment, thanks to all the rain that was nonstop pouring down at them. But what other choice did the thief have? He could not just run around on the streets… there were guards everywhere, and besides he was kind of used to that weather anyway. So he pulled himself back on his feet, shortly he checked in his pocket if the stolen necklace was still there – which it luckily was despite him almost slipping down the roof.

A relieved sigh escaped his by a cloth covered lips and so he continued his way. The job had been easy. Almost too easy for the taste of the thief. Of course he had to sneak past some guards, but – as he expected – those were even more stupid than they looked and some of the doors weren’t even locked. As if they would invite him to get inside and steal something. The thief liked challenges, but he couldn’t expect too much anymore after all those years of pickpocketing and stealing. He had learned to scale down his expectations.

Garretts eyes were continuously focused on the way in front of him, he couldn’t risk to fall another time. From time to time he could see the flickering light of some torches around some corners down at the streets, so there were guards around, but that was not at all a problem for someone like him. With quick and skilled steps, he made his way on the rooftop, and as soon as he got the chance, he let himself fall down onto some boxes that were standing there. The landing was almost catlike quiet as his feet hit the wet and wooden boxes. A quick glance to the left and right told him that it was safe to go on, and so he took his opportunity to run quietly but fast above the street. It was perhaps a bit risky, but the thief wanted to give Basso the loot as soon as possible, just to get back to his ‘home’ again. If you could call a clock tower a ‘home’.

Stone Market wasn’t too far away anymore. The alleys got darker and the guards more alerted. He could hear the two guards that were always patrolling this area talking in the distance. One of them was obviously drunk and he tried to communicate with the other, who was just very pissed. Well at least they were distracted. And Stone Market was literally just around the next corner.

As he finally got through the gate, he walked through those oddly empty streets of the district. Usually there were shady people all around, in every corner and in every side street, but now the streets were almost deserted. The thief could only make out one, or two people max, in the shadows or the light of the fire to warm themselves. Lightly Garrett lifted one eyebrow as he examined the situation. What had happened here? His suspicion rose even more, as he heard a man talking to Basso – which wasn’t that strange, but Jenivere seemed to be very furious judged by her cawing. That couldn’t be good.

Quickly he grabbed the blackjack on his belt and took it out of its holder. He didn’t like the situation, not at all… Slowly he made his way to the window to see who was in there with Basso. But sadly Basso wasn’t known for his window-cleaning techniques so that didn’t help a bit. He had to think of something else.

“I just told you, I have no idea where he is!”, defensively Basso raised his hands, staring at this stranger in front of him, before getting back to work – or rather, he just made all those job offers disappear in the drawers of his desk. Oh, how he cursed Garrett. That idiot was supposed to be careful, and now there was a fucking guard standing right in front of him!

 

There was no need in denying that Garrett worked here any longer… this guard had informed himself, and was supposedly new to this district judging by his uniform he wore hidden under his cloak. Something was different about this man, but Basso couldn’t quite put a finger on it. The man stood there with his arms crossed, that guy was really eager to find Garrett, so it seemed, otherwise he wouldn’t wait here for god knows how long. Garrett would have a lot to explain as soon as he would step through that door, or more correctly: through that window.

While Jenivere kept on croaking, Corvo noticed a shadow behind him approaching in the corner of his eye. He didn’t dare to turn around just yet, however. That had to be the Master Thief, he was sure of it, judging by the look on the concealers face, who now tried to act as naturally as possible – which obviously failed. But Corvo still acted like he didn’t notice something, a dark shadow covering half of his face thanks to the hood on his head.

But as soon as he noticed a rapid movement directly behind his head, he turned around quickly, grabbing the wrist of the smaller man behind him, just before the Blackjack could hit him on the backside of his head. The thief wanted to hit him unconscious, as it seemed. Obviously the thief was very surprised by this action, judging by his widened, brown eyes.

“Nice try. But I’m not as inattentive as you might have thought.”, Corvo just said while he loosened his grip around the others wrist, but only slightly. Garrett on the other hand tried to get himself free, but sadly the other, much taller, man was too strong. “I’m not here to arrest you, or to do any harm to your concealer. I’m just here to talk to you.”

Now the thief raised his head slightly to look directly in Corvos blue eyes with his own brown ones. “Usually, I don’t talk to guards.”, he spoke against the cloth that was covering his mouth. For a brief moment he kept on staring in the other mans eyes, but then just sighed, letting the Blackjack fall out of his hands to fall to the ground. There was no point in fighting, the man was too strong for him, and the thief knew when to give it a rest. For a brief moment he looked over to Basso who was standing there with arms crossed in front of his chest and anything but satisfied with the situation. Of course… after all a guard came to him, just to look for Garrett.

“Oh that’s lovely, but could you discuss this somewhere else? I had by far enough trouble for today.”, Basso grumbled, looking at the other two man.

Of course Garrett could understand him ... the people outside had clearly seen where the guard was heading, and who knew what kind of impact that would have on his business. So Garrett just nodded, reaching into the pocket on his belt to take out the necklace. Almost pointedly, he took a moment to examine the necklace again, before he handed it to Basso across the counter. Basso also took a look at the necklace and then he handed Garrett a small bag, filled with gold coins, as a reward for his work.

Corvo just watched the little scene that was playing right in front of him, waiting to gain the attention back of the other man, but instead he was just counting his gold coins – and he took a long time to do so, coincidentally of course.

“And now, get lost. My reputation had suffered enough thanks to this surprise visit.”, Basso grumbled and made a brief shooing gesture before he gave it a try to pet his bird, but Jenivere had other plans and just pecked into one of his fingers. Not that his was the first time to get pecked by her, but still.

Now the thief made his way to the exit, without looking at Corvo again, but Corvo wouldn’t give up just yet. “Hey, wait.”, he said, following Garrett outside and grabbing him by his shoulder to make him stop walking, which worked for a brief moment, but the smaller man freed himself quickly from that grip, taking a step back and fixing the other man with his dark eyes.

“I just told you, I don’t talk to guards.”, was the dry response of the thief, but again, Corvo wouldn’t give up so easily.

“Too bad that I wanted to talk to you about that one night in the palace again.”

“ _Oh_ , so that’s what this is all about. You have given me some extra time for my escape, and I’m so, **so** grateful for that, after all I wouldn’t have escaped from that _oh so difficult and unfamiliar situation_ without _your mercy_. Please forgive me my blunt behavior, _your grace_ , but I have to go now.” Provocative the thief took a bow and then he went further through the streets, with faster steps, until he found a way up to the rooftops, where he set down for a moment.

After all, it was a quite long way ahead to the clock tower, and Garrett was never someone to run around in the streets, so he had to make his way over rooftops, balconies and beams, which could be pretty exhausting now and then, especially after a job. So it was better to take a break for now, before he would continue his way.

Garrett searched in one of his many pockets for another loot he had found in that house, a brooch made out of real gold and decorated with small gems. So obviously this would bring a lot of money, but maybe he would just keep it for himself as a little souvenir, he didn’t know for sure yet. At least he got rid of that one guard.

“I didn’t come here for that.”

Startled, the thief turned around just to see this guard standing right there on the rooftop, walking slowly towards him. How the hell did he get up here?

“I didn’t report your little ‘visit’ to the empress, even though that you’re right and I gave you some extra time, but that’s not the point. I’m here to thank you once again, for saving the young empress.”

Garrett was a bit baffled to say the least. Still sitting at the exact same spot as before and staring at the man, keeping quiet, waiting for what the other man had to say. Usually he would have gotten up by now and would have just left, but somehow he wanted to listen to what he had to say.

“I don’t care why you were there, and I’m not going to ask you what exactly you were looking for and what you ‘got back’. I don’t care. You saved young Emilys life, in a moment where I would have been far too late to do something. It’s my job as a lord protector to protect Emily and her mother from any danger there might be, but in this moment I couldn’t do that. I wouldn’t have been fast enough. I’m not here to get a reward for that extra time, and I’m not here because you stole something. I am here to honestly thank you once again.”, Corvo looked down at the other, still sitting man, he didn’t even expect an answer to what he just said, but once again the man surprised him.

“You’re just here for something like that?”, the thief raised an eyebrow, obviously pretty skeptical about what the lord protector just said.

“And for the nice view at the city from up here.”, the brown haired man joked and smiled slightly down at the other one.

Even Garrett couldn’t resist that brief smile that was creeping its way on his lips. The thief looked at the city which lay there right in front of them, with the cloudy and rainy night hovering above. It was not a beautiful or nice city. Eternal City had never been such a thing before. But it was his.

“You’re not from a noble household, aren’t you?”, still he was looking at the city, after he put the brooch back into one of his pockets. Corvo sat down next to him on that roof, happily surprised that the thief seemed up for a little conversation.

But he wouldn’t let him get away with that, that easily. “I thought you don’t talk to guards.”, he also looked down at the city, even though he took a brief moment to look down at the man next to him, a small smile on his lips.

“… I don’t. I’m talking to the lords’ protector right now.”, the thief answered, stopping himself from smiling as well. He wouldn’t give that smartass the satisfaction.

“If this conversation should go on any longer, you should probably call me by my name. It’s Corvo Attano. And to answer your question: No, I’m not out of noble house. Actually I’m from Karacas. Got here with my father. I lived on the streets for a few years, and fought my way up to the top… quite literally. To make it short.”

Again the conversation fell into silence, and both of the man were just sitting there next to each other. And to be honest, Corvo didn’t even expect an answer or a response from the other man soon. He just sat there, letting the cold nights wind flow through his hair, while the rain slowly stopped pouring down.

“Garrett. My name is Garrett.”, slowly he pulled down the cloth that was covering half of his face the whole time. “And about the kid… someone had to help. And don’t think I didn’t think twice about that decision, because I did. I’m not a hero and not a savior or a saint.”

“But in the end you still decided to help her, instead of just fleeing and never coming back. You risked to get imprisoned to save her.” He took a good look at Garrett, now that he could see all of his face. He was very pale, just his eyes were covered with black coal and he had a light beard.

“I would have gotten out of there sooner or later anyway.”, again this confidence in his voice. It seemed like this wouldn’t have been the first time to be in prison for him.

“It’s the empresses prison, highest security levels…”

“Give me one or two days and I’d be out of there.”

Now Corvo couldn’t do anything else but laugh about what he said, and even Garrett had to smile amused as he heard the other one laughing. This man was something special, or at least something else, that was for sure.

“However… A pleasure to meet you Garrett. But there’s still one question that’s kind of bothering me for a little while now.”

Finally, Garrett lifted his head and looked directly at Corvo with those dark eyes of his. He seemed curious about his question, but still with a pretty monotone look in his eyes.

“Why are you wearing a corset?”

 

Eternal City was truly an ugly and dangerous city. No place to raise a child, not the first choice when you were looking for a home or a job. Criminals were all around here, and the guards and the night watch had to be on alert all the time. But somehow, this city had its own charm.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just realized that I forgot to show it to my beta-reader. .. Anyway. If you find mistakes, tell me, I'm going to correct them.
> 
> Thanks for reading and stay tuned for the next chapter ♥ Have a nice day!


	4. Numb

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know it's been a whole while since I last updated, and I know, it's not much of an excuse, since you've all been waiting for the next chapter to be uploaded.
> 
> This Fanfiction is far from over! And I really want to keep going! But sadly, so many things got inbetween and I kind of lost track of everything. 
> 
> So anyway, I hope you enjoy this! This time without beta-read, so if you find some mistakes, any, really, just tell me and I will correct them.
> 
> Have a lovely day ♥

_ Now _

 

It had been a while, since Corvo woke up, without that aching, burning and almost bursting pain in his throat. Without the taste of metal in his mouth and without a headache that would make some grown men go down onto their knees. But this man, sitting in this wet cell, with nothing but one or two rats accompanying him, had seen and lived through worse in his lifetime. Even though, this precise cut in the throat, was something he had never even dared to think of.

It hurt to breath, it hurt to swallow his food or even water. Speaking was not possible, and he honestly didn’t want to try it out further.

The night he woke up first with this immense pain running through his body, he wanted to scream in agony, he wanted to cry out all of what he felt in his body, but almost no sound slipped over his dry lips, it was merely a whisper, as the pain grew and grew stronger with each noise he tried to make. Out of Desperation. Out of Disbelieve. Out of Hate. Out of Fear.

Nothing helped.

 

It’s been over a week since then.

And he was still here, not able to do anything, weakened, beaten and filled with so much hatred, that burnt inside of his chest.

 

Outside of the cell, he heard all those noises, he got used to in his time being locked away from the outside world. Those voices, yells, the sound of someone rattling on their doors once again, the sounds of the guards harassing the inmates. All too familiar.

The sound of water dripping out of that crack in the ceiling and falling into a small puddle, and the sound of rats scratching on the cold ground, while looking desperately for something to eat. Corvo could actually watch one of his small and hairy companions, as it got out of one corner, getting closer to him, while he didn’t move. Didn’t move even an inch.

Still, even if this situation was all too familiar for him, something was off. He didn’t know what and he certainly didn’t know how the feeling occurred in the first place. But it was there, and it grew stronger and stronger, as did his heartbeat. Maybe he got sick, maybe the stitched wound on his neck got ripped open as he slept. Maybe he wasn’t careful enough. Slowly, he lifted his arm, scaring the rat away, that was right in front of him. Everything felt deaf, slowed down, and without even noticing, the voices, the noise around him, slowly died down. Until everything, was silent.

His fingers, slowly, carefully touched the wound, expecting to feel something hot and wet to touch the tips of his fingers, to cover them in dark red. To feel the pain, rise in his throat, as he softly touched the wound, the stitches and ran his fingertips carefully over them. Nothing. Only a numb feeling, where he expected to feel the scar, that was slowly building out of his ripped flesh.

Now the confusion rose in him, and his attention rose with it once again. Finally looking around himself, he saw the rat, stuck in movement towards the exit of this cell. Saw the drop of water, just hanging there in midair, as if it was hanging by a thread, not moving even an inch more towards the ground.

His eyes widened in confusion, as he slowly got up, feeling the numbness in his body and with every step, he felt like walking on pillows, not the stony ground with his feet bare.

Was this a dream?

 

Slow steps took him forward, just to see the door of his cell opening. With every inch he got closer, a bit more.

Did he die?

As he finally stepped out of that door, seeing a guard, seemingly frozen in time, as he yelled at another inmate, he saw something else too.

The building, ripped apart on one side, seemingly disappearing into the endless field of light and shadow, while rocks appeared out from nowhere. Lampposts and other, many things, flying in the distance.

For a short time, he just stood there, holding his breath at what opened right before his eyes. Buildings in the distance, just floating there above the abyss, that seemingly ripped the prison apart, the faint silhouette of a whale, as his tail pushed it forward, ever so slowly, the only thing seemingly being able to move, while everything else just floated.

Curiosity overtook the man, overgrew the fear in his heart that told him to stop right where he was standing. But what could happen to him that could be worse than the situation he was already in? He was a dead man already.

As Corvo took a step forward, he halfheartedly expected that the rock would just fall, waking him from this strange dream, or releasing him once and for all. But, none of it happened, so he took more steps forward in a slow pace. While his bare feet touched the ground, no sound could be heard, nothing could be heard, just a low and deep hum, so quiet, so silent that he almost missed it, at the sound of his own heart beating in his chest. Other than that, nothing. Nothing at all.

 

“Corvo Attano.”

Suddenly a voice appeared out of the nothingness, echoing in his head, burning itself into the back of his mind, for him to remember. And his whole body froze. So, calm, monotone and so, so cold.

“A kid from Karnaca.”

Corvos eyes widened, and hectically he turned around to see who, or what, was speaking to him. But there was nothing, no one there.

“Father of poor Emily.”

He felt his heart beating faster and faster with each and every word. Emily… How scared she had been, how her eyes widened in shock as her mother was taken from her in such a brutal force. And then there was Corvo, unable to do anything.

“Lord Protector.”

Even though he wasn’t the one stabbing her chest, he wasn’t the one ripping Emily from her dear mother, he felt as if the blade was in his hands, as if he was the one responsible for her death. Because he wasn’t strong enough. Because he wasn’t fast enough.

“Or, former Lord Protector, rather.”

Finally, Corvos eyes could focus on a shadow, on something floating just one or two meters away from him, barely above the ground. Materializing into the form of a pale, young man with eyes as black as the darkest dreams and the deepest sea, swallowing both, men and ship as they drowned in the big nothingness.

Corvos heart skipped a beat as his blue ones, focused on the dark eyes of the other. What was he?

“And now you’re here. Look at what you’ve become. A prisoner, wounded to the point where your voice shall no longer be heard. Broken to the point, where fighting doesn’t seem to be an option for you anymore. Impressive, really, how far a man of noble and pride could fall as far and as much.”

The former Lord Protector stared at the being in front of him, eyes not for a second looking away, as the pale man spoke in his calm voice, piercing him with his eyes. It was needless to say that Corvo didn’t answer, since he couldn’t. And so, he listened. And watched as the man in front of him disappeared in a cloud of black fog, just to appear even further away from the man, standing there in rags again.

“I watched all of this happen from afar.”, he said, while Corvo took step by step, ever so slowly, forward to follow him, feeling his legs weakened and his exhaustion once again.

“You are not dead. Not yet.”, as if the one with the black eyes had predicted the question, lingering in Corvos head, he answered, as Corvo slowly came to a halt, just two steps away from this man, who was just a head taller than him while floating. “And when you’ll be, depends on your next moves, your next actions. Your beloved empress, dead. Your daughter, taken from you, but just like you, still alive.”

At those words, Corvo lifted his gaze more, his light eyes widened, desperately trying to say the name of his daughter, but just ending up coughing once again, holding his throat at the throbbing pain. The thought of her being dead too, never left his mind, not even for a second, always lingering to hunt him down like a prey. To get him, in his darkest moments.

“I won’t get you out of the prison, Corvo.”

His gaze lifted once again, just to see a giant whale floating by, just meters behind the young man, behind this godlike-being, who wasn’t even paying any attention to this giant thing.

“I merely give you… this: There might come a chance in the following days, for you to escape the hell you are trapped in. If you take this chance, we shall meet again. I’m more than curious to see, how this story, the story of Corvo Attano, the dishonored Lord Protector, is going to turn out, and how it is going to end. And more importantly: How soon the end is going to reach him, in what condition he will face the cold embrace of death.”

Gracefully, the young man, still focusing Corvo with his gaze, bent down, as if to bow in such a friendly manner in front of him, spreading his arms elegantly, as further words escaped his lips.

“I am more than excited, to watch the path you will take.”

 

With a hectic breath, Corvo sat up on the bed he was laying on, eyes widened in shock and disbelief of his surroundings. He was in the cell once again, feeling the dripping of the water, hearing the harsh and broken voices of the other prisoners, as they yelled and begged for forgiveness, claiming their innocence for the hundredth of times. The guards raising their voices, once again using their clubs to hit against the iron bars, filling the air with a harsh sound and then silence, before once again raising their voices. The everyday routine.

His breath was fastened as he was staring at the wall on the opposite side of the room. In his blind panic, he touched his throat with his hand, feeling the scar underneath his rough skin, feeling the burning pain in his throat. The same pain he always felt when he was trying to get the smallest noise out of his mouth.

This hasn’t been a dream. He had been there. Corvo Attano had been there, in this nothingness, in this dreamlike world. He had been speaking to that young man and he could still feel eyes lingering on him, even though no one was there to watch him. Not even guards in front of his cell. No, but he knew something or… someone was there, watching his every move, watching him sitting on the edge of the bed, watching him taking deep and shaking breaths.

Too many questions were spinning around in Corvos mind, as he watched the drops hit the little puddle on the floor. Just like in his dream. But this time, they didn’t stop. He saw a rat in the corner of his eye, passing through his cell. And then finally, the scene played on, as he heard a voice outside of his cell.

Corvo lifted his head to look at the cell door, where a guard with a plate full of food stood, speaking to him and finally leaving the food there. The former Lord Protector didn’t feel much like eating, still he got up slowly, just to get over there with heavy steps. But something drove him forward, determination pulled on him, pulled him up from the bed.

  
As he bent down to grab the bread off the plate, he noticed something, something underneath. A note:

 

_Corvo,_

_Who we are is irrelevant right now. Just know that we have faith in you._

_Here is the key to your cell. Once you're out, head for the prison's Interrogation Room. Take the explosive there and plant it on the outer door. When the bomb goes off, run. Make for the river and lose yourself in the sewers. You'll find some useful gear stashed there._

_One of the prison guards will leave a weapon just outside your cell._

_And good luck. We need you alive and well for what's to come._

_\- A friend._

Corvo couldn’t believe the words he just read. And so, he read them again and again, his eyes rushing over the piece of paper, before his hand finally found its way back to the plate, where a key was placed. Just as the note said.

Once again, his heart beat faster, but this time, not out of anxiety and fear, no, this time, out of determination. His cold eyes gazing through the bars, to see if someone was watching him, he unlocked the cell door with care, before he opened it quietly.

This couldn’t have been a dream.

Just like the black-eyed being told him, in this world that was so surreal, so bizarre that it almost frightened him, he would get a chance to get out of here. He would get a chance to do something.

 

And while dark eyes were watching him, once again, from afar, he was taking this chance.

Corvo Attano was ready to face destiny and to become what he needed to become to reach his goal.

He would save his daughter. And he would make those, responsible for all of this, pay.


End file.
